THE SPIRIT OF CHRISTMAS

 

I remember it as if it were yesterday.  In reality, it was sixteen years ago.  The year 1998 had been a very difficult year as my wife’s health condition deteriorated.  As the Advent season moved toward its climax I became aware of a sense of sadness, a degree of regret, and a feeling that I had lost something.  As I began to contemplate this vague sense of unease I realized that what was missing was my usual “Christmas spirit.”  I mused and I reflected.  What was this “Christmas spirit” which I lacked?  What was really missing?  I remembered the keen sense of anticipation which I felt when I was a boy counting down the days until Christmas.  I remembered a sense of warmth and wonder as I smelled the Christmas cookies my mom baked.  I remembered the familiarity of the Christmas music playing on our old console stereo and the excitement of walking around department stores decked with boughs of holly.  I remembered the Christmas specials on television and the Christmas movies; “It’s a Wonderful Life” and “A Christmas Carol.”  Suddenly I saw something more clearly than I had ever seen it before!  It was in Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol!”  It was in the appearances of the spirits of Christmases past, present, and future!  There were the spirits of Christmas!  Dickens had personified the spirit of Christmas!  An entirely pagan “Christmas spirit” had arisen out of the Victorian era in England which accompanied the celebration of the birth of Christ right into the modern day!  Christmas had become a time of “good will toward men.” It was not the good will of God toward men, but the good will of men toward one another!  The Christmas spirit which I lacked was not a product of Christian faith but the product of a romantic, humanistic period of English history during which biblical Christianity was in steep decline!  The two Christmases grew up together, side by side, a Christless, pagan celebration and a celebration of faith and worship!  Over the years the two have become almost inextricably intertwined, nearly indistinguishable, even though evangelical Christians have cried out, “Keep Christ in Christmas” and “Jesus is the reason for the season!”  We have decried the commercialization of Christmas and have emphasized giving rather than receiving while at the same time talked about some vague “Christmas spirit.”  This “Christmas spirit” has become more real to most of us than the Holy Spirit!  Christmas is not a time for men to be kinder to one another than we usually are.  It is a celebration of the time that God revealed himself to men as a God of grace!

UNSEEN FRUIT

Acts 14:8-20

            Having been driven out of Iconium, Paul and Barnabas moved on to Lystra.  They did not go to a synagogue and there is no synagogue mentioned so we conclude there were not enough Jews in Lystra to merit one.  (There had to be ten male heads of households in a town in order to have a synagogue.)  So the brothers preached wherever they could.  One day Paul spotted a man listening to him who was crippled.  Luke discovers later that the man had been crippled from birth.  Seeing that the man had come to believe Paul commanded him to stand up and he was healed.

            Now we see that if there were many Jews in Lystra they had not influenced the pagan people very much!  Because the crippled man was healed the people immediately concluded that Paul and Barnabas were Zeus and Hermes who had returned to the Lystra Valley.  There was an ancient legend that said the two gods had come to the valley centuries before disguised as humans.  They went door to door and were turned away at every one until one poor, elderly couple invited them in and provided for them.  Afterwards, Zeus and Hermes took them to a hilltop while they flooded and destroyed the entire valley and all those who had rejected them.  Then the gods turned their humble cottage into a great temple in which the old couple served until their deaths.

            The people of Lystra would not make the same mistake twice!  They praised Paul and Barnabas as if they were the returned gods!  The priest of the temple brought oxen to sacrifice!  Paul and Barnabas did everything they could to convince the people they were merely men like them who had brought a message from the true God.

            It appears that somewhere in the crowds were Jews from Antioch and Iconium who had hunted Paul and Barnabas down!  They persuaded the people that the apostles were charlatans and trouble-makers.  The adoring crowd immediately turned into an angry mob and stoned Paul and dragged him out of the city leaving him for dead.  Paul’s disciples gathered around his body, perhaps prepared to protect their leader from further mutilation.  They were probably discussing what to do with the body when Paul rose up and went back into the city!  What amazing courage!  The next day the apostles left for Derbe.

            Lystra appears to have been an epic failure!  There is no mention of even one person believing the message and being converted!  Verse 21 says they revisited all the cities on their way home “strengthening the souls of the disciples, encouraging them to continue in the faith,” but there is no specific mention of any believers in Lystra.  How discouraging!

            When we get to chapter 16 we find that Paul and Silas return to Lystra.  When they get there they find a young believer by the name of Timothy who joins their team and becomes a key figure in the 1^st century church.  He travels with Paul.  He becomes the pastor of the church in Ephesus.  He is the recipient of two epistles from Paul.  He came from Lystra!

            We don’t know when Timothy came to faith.  He was already a believer when Paul returned to Lystra on his second journey.  Paul and Barnabas planted the seed of the gospel in Lystra and saw no fruit whatsoever.  Nevertheless, the Holy Spirit was at work behind the scenes.  The seed grew, unobserved to the apostles, and the fruit of that seed was Timothy.

            We never really know what the Holy Spirit will do with the seed we plant when we bear witness to people.  It may well appear that nothing is happening.  It may seem like we failed.  We may not be able to observe the seed taking root and growing.  But Lystra and Timothy are perfect examples of what God can and will do when we faithfully bear witness!  We have no reason to become discouraged and give up.  Just as Paul got up from the ground and went back into the city and then returned a few years later, we should keep going back again and again and sharing the truth about what God has done in our lives and what he will do for all who believe in Jesus Christ!

SO THEY REMAINED...

Acts 14;1-3

            “Now at Iconium they entered together into the Jewish synagogue and spoke in such a way that a great number of both Jews and Greeks believed.  But the unbelieving Jews stirred up the Gentiles and poisoned their minds against the brothers.  So they remained for a long time, speaking boldly for the Lord…”

            So Paul and Barnabas moved on from Antioch because the Jews there stirred up persecution against them and drove them out of the area.  But what did they do when they arrived in Iconium?  They went straight back to the synagogue!  The negative experience in Antioch did not turn them off to taking the message to the Jews first in Iconium!  Why did they stick with the Jews?  They knew they were called to do this and they were going to remain faithful to the calling they received from God.  So even if they were going to run into more trouble in Iconium they stayed the course and obeyed.  A reminder to us to remain faithful to God’s calling to bear witness faithfully no matter what the response we receive!

            Sure enough, the “unbelieving Jews” were very displeased with the wonderful response to the gospel in Iconium and they set about stirring up opposition against the apostles.  It is interesting that the Greek word for “unbelieving” could be literally translated “disobedient.”  The Jews who did not receive and believe the gospel of Jesus were being disobedient!  It was not just a matter of religious preference; it was a matter of disobedience!  The God who created their nation, protected and grew them in Egypt, guided them through the wilderness, gave them the law and the prophets, and the promises of the messiah/Savior, did not send his Son along with an option of accepting or rejecting him!  The Jewish people were commanded to honor and glorify their messiah when he came to them.  Their failure to do this was an act of disobedience.  The offer of the gospel to people today is much more than simply a religious option.  The God of the universe who created all people and who intends to create a planet in which all people obey and worship him does not simply offer Jesus as Savior but demands humble submission to him!  It seems the very least we can do as Christians is tell people about this God and his Son and what is expected of them!  If they reject Christ they are disobedient!

            Finally, Paul and Barnabas were experiencing the same kind of opposition and potential persecution they experienced in Antioch.  The Jews “poisoned the minds” of the Gentiles against them.  Time to leave, right?  Time to move on!  Time to shake the dust from their robes and go to the next city!  The next words of the text are just so matter of fact; “So they remained for a long time, speaking boldly for the Lord…”  That just leaves me both amazed and rebuked.  It is as if they said to one another, “Wow!  There is a lot of opposition to the good news here!  We need to stay for a long time and keep teaching!”  We face little opposition to the gospel.  And when we do meet with opposition we are more likely to give up and move on.  Instead, we should pray and press on!  Never give up!  Keep bearing witness; keep teaching; keep loving people in Jesus’ name!

THEY TOLD EVERYBODY!

Acts 13:42-44, 48, 52

    “As they went out, the people begged that these things might be told them the next Sabbath.  And after the meeting of the synagogue broke up, many Jews and devout converts to Judaism followed Paul and Barnabas, who, as they spoke with them, urged them to continue in the grace of God.  The next Sabbath almost the whole city gathered to hear the word of the Lord.

    “And when the Gentiles heard this, they began rejoicing and glorifying the word of the Lord, and as many as were appointed to eternal life believed.

    “And the disciples were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit.”

            I’m preaching through the Acts of the Apostles and in my study I’ve noticed a number of things that have struck me differently than they have before.  I’d like to share some of these with you for your own reflection beginning with the ministry of Paul and Barnabas in Antioch of Pisidia.

            Upon arrival in Antioch the apostles attended the synagogue meeting and as was the custom the visitors were invited to share some word of encouragement with the people.  Paul stood and preached a powerful sermon showing how God was at work throughout Jewish history in preparation of the coming of the son of David, the messiah.  He preached that the forgiveness they sought but could not obtain under the law could be theirs through the Savior, Jesus.  This message met with a welcome reception and many of the people of the synagogue begged Paul and Barnabas to come back on the next Sabbath and tell them more.

            I’m amazed at what we read in verse 44, “The next Sabbath almost the whole city gathered to hear the word of the Lord.”  How is it that “almost the whole city” showed up at the synagogue on the second Sabbath to hear the apostles?  There is only one possibility.  Word of mouth.  The people who were in attendance on the first Sabbath could not stop telling everyone they met about the message the two visitors brought!  There must have been an astonishing enthusiasm about these people because their invitations resulted in a massive crowd the next Sabbath!

            Sadly, the Jews were filled with jealousy when they saw the size of the crowd and all the Gentiles who were at their synagogue.  They began “to contradict what was spoken by Paul, reviling him” (v. 45).  As a result Paul and Barnabas announced that they were turning to the Gentiles because it had been prophesied that they should “bring salvation to the ends of the earth” (v. 47).  This caused the Gentiles to begin to celebrate and rejoice in spite of the Jews!  All those who were chosen for salvation believed!

            The Jews continued to incite opposition to the apostles and they ended up having to leave the region.  But as they left the new believers were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit.

            My reflections are centered on what happened between the two Sabbaths and the fact that these new believers were able to spread the word to so many people in just six days!  They must have been so excited to hear about a Savior who forgives their sins!  Their enthusiasm about this good news must have been so great that it overcame any hesitations they might have had about sharing it with people!  Their joy must have led them to talk about it everywhere they went!  Even when their teachers were driven out of town they continued to be filled with joy and filled with the Holy Spirit.

            Am I filled with such joy and enthusiasm about my salvation?  Am I this excited about what God has done in my life?  These questions have caused me to do some serious introspection.  How gracious God has been to me!  How amazing that he has given me forgiveness and salvation!  I have also begun to pray differently.  “Lord, fill me with your Holy Spirit and let him have full control of my life in such a way that I will overflow with joy so that I cannot help but tell others what you have done for me!”  

WHAT DO I OWE?

 

 

Romans 13 

Just a couple of observations comparing Romans 13:1-7 to 13:8-10.  Paul is finishing up a section in which he teaches believers how we are supposed to live our lives.  We are to present our bodies as living sacrifices to God (12:1).  We are to avoid conformity to the world (12:2).  We are to humbly see ourselves as fitting into the body of Christ as people with certain gifts along with other believers with other gifts (12:3-8).  The rest of chapter 12 lists a number of proper attitudes and behaviors for Christian people.

Then we come to chapter 13 where we ought to regret that someone decided it would be a good idea to insert chapter and verse divisions in the Bible!  Paul continues with the big picture of Christian living.  This time he is talking about Christians in relationship with secular government.  It is a well-known passage.  We are supposed to live as faithful subjects to the government over us.  We are not to be rebellious or resisters.  He gives us a short list of what we owe to the government.  “Pay to all what is owed to them: taxes to whom taxes are owed, revenue to whom revenue is owed, respect to whom respect is owed, honor to whom honor is owed” (13:7). 

At this point we are not only frustrated with the people who inserted chapters and verses, we are frustrated with the modern Bible editors who think they are doing us a favor by putting a new heading between verses 7 and 8!  The ESV editors put in “Fulfilling the Law Through Love.”  The NIV editors bring us “Love, for the Day Is Near.”  It seems rather obvious to me that Paul puts no break in thought here.  He has just finished talking about what Christians owe to the government.  Now he is talking about what we owe to individual human beings! 

The thought has been, “Pay what you owe!”  That thought continues, “Do not neglect to pay the people around you what you owe them!  You have an ongoing debt of love that you must not fail to pay!”  He simply states that half of the law of Moses addresses interpersonal relationships and that law is fulfilled by loving our neighbors!  “You shall love your neighbor as yourself” (13:9).

Unfortunately, too many Christian financial advisors have put the sole emphasis of this passage on the opening phrase of 31:8, “Owe no one anything…”  They say, “There you have it!  You are not supposed to go into debt.”  Then we miss the mark entirely!  What Paul is actually saying is, “You have a debt that can never be paid off.  This debt is the debt of loving your neighbor.  Do not neglect your payments on this debt!”

So we should come away from this passage with one simple question, “Am I keeping up with my payments on the debt of love I owe them?  How am I loving them?  How am I showing them the love of God?  How am I living out my Christian witness through love?”

MY SHEPHERD

Psalm 23

I would like you to try something with me!  Before you read beyond the paragraph break below, go get a piece of paper and a pen.  Then read Psalm 23 again and this time do your best to read it with “fresh eyes.”  Then pause and reflect on the work of a shepherd.  Try and think of as many things as you can that the shepherd does for his sheep.  Write them down on your piece of paper.  Take your time.  Try to meditate on David’s word picture, that the Lord is his shepherd.  Here is the list I jotted down last night:

Guides

Protects

Heals

Directs

Leads

Reassures

Fights

Serves

Feeds

Refreshes

Dies

Searches

Provides

Disciplines

Strengthens

Knows

Preserves

Loves

Nourishes

Calls

Restores

Finds

Ministers

Comforts

Renews 

Now, look at your list and think about how our Lord has acted as your shepherd and give thanks.

RAGING PRIDE

2 Chronicles 26

At our men’s Bible study this week I mentioned that I had just read the story of King Uzziah in 2 Chronicles 26.  Immediately two of the men responded, “Oh yeah!  He’s the king who was struck with leprosy!”  Maybe I should not have been surprised that they remembered this fact about one of the ancient kings of Judah.  When I think of Uzziah I think of the prophet Isaiah.  He had his vision of Jehovah “in the year that King Uzziah died” (Isaiah 6:1).  Uzziah’s is a tragic story.

He became king of Judah when he was sixteen years old.  “He did what was right in the eyes of the LORD, just as his father Amaziah had done.  He sought God during the days of Zechariah, who instructed him in the fear of God.  As long as he sought the LORD, God gave him success” (vs. 4, 5).  He was victorious in wars against the Philistines and the Arabs.  The Ammonites paid tribute to him.  Uzziah tore down cities and rebuilt them.  He fortified the city of Jerusalem and built war machines that could shoot arrows and sling huge stones.  He had a massive army.  And he was a farmer who “loved the soil” (v. 10).

Then we read the fateful verse…”But after Uzziah became powerful, his pride led to his downfall” (v. 16).  Somehow Uzziah thought it would be a good idea for him to go into the temple and burn incense on the altar.  Try and picture this!  A middle-eastern potentate entered the temple of his God intending to offer incense.  Who is going to stop him?  The priests of Jehovah were courageous.  Azariah and 80 other priests went into the temple and confronted the king!  They told him what he already knew.  The offering of incense was reserved for the priesthood alone!  They urged him to leave the temple.  What he was doing was sinful and he would face God’s anger. 

But King Uzziah would not listen.  Instead he became angry at the priests.  How angry did he become?  He was raging at the priests in the temple in front of the altar of incense!  As he was raging at the priests “leprosy broke out on his forehead” (v. 19).  The priests were horrified!  They “hurried him out.  Indeed, he himself was eager to leave, because the LORD had afflicted him” (v. 20).  The king suffered with leprosy the rest of his life!  He was separated from other people.  He could never enter the temple again.  His son governed in his absence.

How much does God hate the sin of pride?  Here was a king who served him faithfully for years!  Here was a king whom God had blessed richly!  But he took his eyes off the Lord just long enough to begin thinking he was pretty special.  Pride only needed a tiny foothold.  It led him to think more highly of himself than he should have.  It made him desire to do things he never should have attempted.  It seized his heart and he would not listen to God’s priests.  If he had only listened!  If only he had put down the censer and left the temple!  If there had been just a shred of humility remaining he would have paid heed to the counsel of the priests and he would have been spared.

But many of us know how sneaky pride is.  We don’t notice when it first enters our hearts.  The very nature of pride deceives us because we don’t notice it growing.  We just think we deserve all the things we desire.  God gives us people in our lives to lead us away from pride; our wives, our friends, brothers and sisters from church.  But if pride has gained a grip on us we resent them and don’t listen.  Pride leads to destruction.  Pride goes before a fall.  Just check out the stories of King Nebuchadnezzar and King Herod Agrippa.

Oh that God would keep us from this insidious sin!  May the Holy Spirit’s voice be heard and cause us to turn from pride!  And may we learn to listen to those around whom God has given us to coax us in the right direction!